This new small building is meant to host a private full immersion Italian K-12 school, in the Mission district of San Francisco. After a community meeting exposed serious concerns about the original design of the facade, I set out to re-imagine the relationship of the school with the street.
In order to open the first level to the life on the sidewalk, I used full height structural glass fins which completely de-materialize the first level of the building as perceived from the sidewalk, while I also reduced the structural impositions using thin, diagonal braces, and diagonal steel columns that also contribute to the later support system of the facade, thus avoiding bulky moment frames. Above, in order to to reduce the heat gains of this southern facade I designed a metal brise solail screen that serves multiple purposes: it holds the urban edge of the block, it provides a strong relationship with the historical Hall next door, while it increases its permeability from top to bottom, toward the public street. I used a simple Grasshopper script to design and generate the metal screen and locate it in the Revit model. Also, I have obtained an amazing resin 3D print from the great folks at Carbon 3D (see last two pictures.) The portions of the building facing the public roadways represent the web, with its chaos and vulnerabilities: the braced, irregular, glazed facade is built at the minimum allowed setback on the South and East edges of the site, and it contains the office spaces with the executive penthouse on the top floor. Glare is reduced using darkened glass, while on the south there are also louvers. The green roof helps cooling the building during the hot periods of the year.
On the west side, a massive, double walled mechanical concrete "Spine" functions has a figurative protection for the courtyard and the rest of the site, occupied by other existing buildings of the same company. The "Spine" holds most of the mechanical and service elements of the building, and on the West side its dark color and uniform large surface absorbs the sun radiations and prevents the office spaces from overheating. Additional heat exchange can be achieved by running water systems within the large concrete mass. Two separate blocks are cladded in solar panels and provide opportunity for separate elements of the program: on the South, the Executive Briefing Center, while on the North the underground Service yard, and the Amenity area. The Solar Orchard lays in the inner court, and provides additional renewable power production, while its pool provides freshness and moisture to the communal amenity space.
This is my proposal for the replacement of the Morandi Bridge, that collapsed on August 2018, in Genoa, Italy.
Ponte sul Polcevera Seq1 from Giovanni Succi on Vimeo. Ponte sul Polcevera Seq2 from Giovanni Succi on Vimeo.
We were retained by a renowned San Francisco firm, focusing on hospitality, as BIM consultants to begin the modeling of this complex home, located on a small island off the coast of Panama. The challenging roof shape was the focus of the client's design effort and that is where we spent most modeling hours. After a Schematic Phase, I begun to also visualize the residence, to help the client verify the aesthetics they had selected for the project.
To simulate an irregular wood constructions, I built some special beam and column families which where then randomly "flexed" and "disturbed" with a Dynamo script. This produced the look of irregular lumber throughout the house's structure (see especially the interior renderings). After the renderings and photo-montages produced for different client's presentations, I also produced a couple of study animations for this house. This project was already being built when I assembled a BIM "task force" dedicated to modeling this building, with the intention of documenting in Revit the interior design, which was also within the scope of work of the studio.
For this closed competition I was asked to assemble a team and develop the building concept created as a Plexiglas scale model. Within a week I modeled a Revit version of the building, and the team produced a presentation for a meeting with a client representative (and one of the competition judges) who helped the studio with important feedback.
I was asked to continue CA on this project, while under construction. Using the Chinese made CD set of drawings, I created a study model in Revit, and begun to analyse the problems of fireproofing for the diagonal void cut of the facades. The on-going results were a series of questions (for both the contractor and the client) which we crafted in the form of markup sheets (see last two images).
These are studies I produced for the hotel portion of a larger commercial development. After some initial options, the designed focused on the hexagonal pods motives, which echoed the 3D hexagonal design of the storefronts, already proposed to the client.
When asked to help with the CD of this lobby, I developed the details for the security desk backlit LED panel cladding, the folding GFRG ceiling, and the stone cladding. I was also able to identify issues with the framing of the dropped ceiling being built, and point out to the contractor the inconsistency with the CD set.
The Mule Creek Infill Complex Project is a design-build, stipulated sum project with a contract value of approximately $330 million. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) project includes 544,000 SF of new construction, spread across 23 individual buildings. The scope of work, adjacent to the active, high-security Mule Creek State Prison, includes the mass excavation of over 1,000,000 cubic yards of material, all new site utilities and systems to support the new complex and over one mile of lethal electrified fencing.
For this project I have first participated in the Competition and then I was in the team that developed the project from DD through 100% CD. I was the BIM manager for the HOK office. I have also produced some renderings for marketing purposes. This project proposed an addition to an existing chalet in Mill Valley. The addition was composed of a expanded open kitchen, double height dining space, and a remodeled living room.
For this 108,000 SF, 120 FT tall, 11 stories, high-rise residential building I have provided BIM modeling and visualization services. Starting from a Sketchup model and DWG backgrounds, I have created and rendered the model in Revit (shell only).
After the Schematic Design phase was completed by the the initial architect, we took over the design development of this interior remodeling, eventually producing the Planning Review set, and the Permit Set.
For this existing home, the client asked us to design a number of different items: the living room, the family room, the staircase, and the front and back yards. In the backyard, we also designed a new, detached wine cellar.
I was hired by VBN Architects to model and render this building, desinged by Peter Pfau. For a few weeks, therefore, I have been working closely with the architect and the project team and developed the Revit model of the building. These are the final images rendered in 3D Studio MAX, together with some photograph of the built building, by Juli Abbott.
After I was involved in the late master plan design and visualization for a proposed new Oilers arena, while at Stantec, I decided to pursue my original concept of the "swirling" open plaza (from the north) and green park (from the south) that generate the geometry of the arena itself, at their intersection. The arena has two concrete, organic wings: one perforated to become a large truss, to the north and east; and one more solid, to the south and west. The perforated, glazed wing allows both for a visual connection with the large plaza to the north, and northern light to flood the circulation galleria within it.
This project included the addition of 3 stories to the existing concrete frame garage. The planning officials at the City of San Jose required the elevation on Winchester Blvd. to be "broken" down and varied, both in heights, colors and materials. Therefore I had to reconsider the original design that we developed to win this project, a sleek metal mesh wrapping the concrete frame. Ultimately, the metal mesh was replaced by a more colorful and differentiated set of elements. EIFS panels, a long fiberglass cornice, metal louvers, and glazed "shopping" windows provided the requested playfulnes and variation. The project was modeled and documented in Revit, and I followed it through CA.
For this TI project I supported the production of Revit documents for the architectural team. I was then asked to create graphics that would emphasize the multidisciplinary nature of the Stantec team, which encompassed architecture and MEP components. The resulting image is a diagramatic rendering of the architectural and mechanical Revit model which was produced for the delivery of the project.
I was placed on this project mainly as Revit team support leader, but then I took on the design and documentation of the board room, which was never built.
The Chong Partners Sacramento office proposed this project for the Performing Arts Center and School, together with residential and commercial components. The redevelopment site is the old Sacramento Railroad yard with its brick and steel historic industrial buildings. After the initial master planning, Chong Partners developed a schematic design for the Performing Arts Center, which included a 1600 seats theater. I participated in the schematic design of the whole site, but then focused on the theater and plaza, further developing the facade, the lobby/foyer, and their relationship with the adjacent public space.
This project was developed to the SD phase, as an important waterfront development in Sausalito. It features a storage building, an industrial two story building with roll-up doors for the shops on the ground floor; and an elegant office component at the most visible portion of the site, the tip toward the marina. This building also provides a plaza with restaurant / cafe' open to the general public.
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